Horner: Ricciardo was broken at the end of last year

Daniel Ricciardo will return to Formula 1 next weekend by driving the AlphaTauri at the start of the Hungarian Grand Prix. On the eve of the stage, Christian Horner explained how he decided last year to let the Australian rider return to Red Bull Racing.

Christian Horner: “It all started last year in a hotel room in Mexico City. I met with Daniel – it was clear his options for 2023 were limited so he looked pretty broken.

Then I offered him to return to Red Bull Racing for 12 months, but not behind the wheel, but to help us work on the simulator and take part in tire tests. So that he could return his passion for sports, since it was clear that he had already stopped enjoying what was happening. Honestly, I haven’t gotten to know the Daniel we’ve come to expect in recent years. That’s how it all started.

He came to us a few days after the race in Abu Dhabi to work on the simulator, and it was a disaster. Daniel has adopted every bad habit imaginable. He started working with his former racing engineer [Саймоном Ренни], and gradually get rid of these habits. Daniel added something with each session and his confidence gradually grew. He started to show the same pace as our main pilots.

The original plan was to put Daniel behind the wheel to test at Silverstone. In addition, we actively involved him in marketing activities, but he made a great impression in the tests.”